Minimum Wage 'Not Enough' For London, Study Reveals

View of a woman's hand holding 17p in British Sterling; the amount which the minimum wage is to increase by.

Most Londoners do not believe the minimum wage is enough to live on in the capital, according to a new study.

A survey of 2,200 people across London by the Labour party also found that two-thirds of lower-income Londoners have seen their standard of living fall in the past three years, along with 71% of those who are disabled.

Three out of four disabled Londoners expect their living standards to fall in the next three years.

Labour's economy spokesperson on London Assembly, Fiona Twycross, said: "Poverty pay is a growing problem in London. In 2007 there were 420,000 people paid below the London Living Wage. By 2012 this number had increased to 600,000, which represents 17% of all the jobs in London.

"This means there are hundreds of thousands of Londoners in work, today, who are being paid a poverty wage.

"As today's report shows, Londoners of all incomes are struggling as rent, energy, childcare and transport costs continue to rise. There is also a deeply worrying pattern that it is the lowest paid, the disabled and black and minority ethnic Londoners who are being hit hardest by the cost of living crisis.

"We need the Mayor to lobby government to increase the minimum wage to a London Minimum wage, as a stepping stone to a statutory living wage for all."

More than nine out of 10 of those questioned said they did not believe the minimum wage of £6.31 an hour was enough to live on in the capital.